Qagħaq tal-Ġunġlien literally translates to sesame rings. These are traditional Maltese biscuits made from wheat flour, lemon and orange peel and a bunch of aromatics, including cinnamon, cloves and anise seed. You will also find them shaped in a figure of eight and called Ottijiet (otto = eight in Italian). They are commonly found all…
Category: Maltese Sweets
Għadam tal-Mejtin, Maltese Almond Cookies
Għadam tal-Mejtin, which literally translates to “dead men’s bones”, can sound a bit creepy. But never mind the name… they are absolutely delicious almond cookies. The name comes from the shape of the cookies, which are prepared in the form of a bone. These traditional Maltese cookies are prepared in the beginning of November, in…
Maltese Christmas Log
The Maltese Christmas Log is very different than the Yule log, popular throughout Europe. Instead of sponge cake, the Maltese one is made with crushed biscuits and a variety of nuts, fruit and sometimes chocolate chips. It is very popular during the festive season, and besides it being sooo delicious it is very simple to…
Kwareżimal – Maltese Lenten Cookies
This recipe reminds me of home and the beautiful smells that would fill our house while baking these cookies. The orange blossom water smell also reminds me of Spring, which happens to be round the corner. 🙂 Kwareżimal refers to the forty days of Lent, during which traditionally in Malta most animal products were avoided. In fact,…
Traditional Maltese Figolli
Figolli are a traditional Easter cookie cake with almond filling, decorated with chocolate or icing. Traditionally they were made in the shapes of Catholic symbols related to Easter but nowadays you can find them in all shapes, such as lamb, rabbit, heart, fish, butterfly, cars… At home, we bake Figolli every year. They are not too hard…